Insight: A new era for rehabilitative justice

Today, Reed in Partnership begins delivery of the CFO Evolution service for the Ministry of Justice in Croydon, Lewisham, Lambeth and in High Down Prison (in collaboration with Shaw Trust). Programme Director, Will Hall, looks at the benefit of rehabilitative approaches to justice and sets out the aims of CFO Evolution.

CFO Evolution is a key initiative to help offenders move towards mainstream provision or activity, promoting rehabilitative justice in prison and community settings. It builds on the successes of CFO Activity Hubs, which supported ex-offenders in the community, and CFO3, which supported prisoners with reintegration activities whilst in prison.

With the current prison overcrowding crisis, understaffing means that more than half of prisoners are spending 22 hours in their cells a day, and reoffending rates (39% within the first year of release) cost the UK public on average £18.1 billion a year. The prison capacity crisis will take some time to solve, but the new CFO Evolution service has the potential to play a key role in supporting the focus on a more rehabilitative prison system.

Rehabilitative policies prioritise the rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders. Unlike punitive approaches, which primarily seek to punish, rehabilitative justice emphasises education, vocational training, and psychological support. This approach not only helps offenders develop the skills needed to lead law-abiding lives, but also addresses underlying issues such as trauma, addiction and mental health problems which are highly prevalent amongst the prison population. Countries like Norway have successfully implemented rehabilitative policies, resulting in significantly lower reoffending rates. Providing prisoners with meaningful activities and support encourages personal growth and aids societal reintegration.

The CFO initiative has been striving for a similar approach in the UK. The CFO Evolution programme has four main aims:

• Providing a sense of purpose: Offenders with complex needs are given clearly defined progression routes that span both custodial and community components of their sentences.
• Creating safe spaces: The programme offers safe environments where offenders can engage in positive activities, fostering community buy-in and increasing wellbeing.
• Increasing engagement: It aims to enhance engagement with mainstream services for traditionally excluded groups.
• Encouraging law-abiding lives: By participating in various activities, offenders are encouraged to lead law-abiding lives.

Reed in Partnership has already supported more than 1,200 ex-offenders through the CFO Activity Hubs in Lewisham and Croydon. A recent Justice Data Lab report found that the CFO programmes have successfully reduced reoffending rates by 8 percentage points, from 33% to 25% (HMPPS CFO Report, April 2024). This next stage of delivery, the CFO Evolution, aims to build on this success and address gaps in existing provision arising from the disjunct between the support prisoners get in prison and the support they receive once released. The CFO Evolution will offer “through the gate” advice, support and guidance which will create a more integrated and smooth reintegration journey for offenders as they leave the prison system.

Reed in Partnership’s mission is to positively transform people and their communities. We are excited to start working on the new CFO Evolution service with our community stakeholders and participants in order to enable more individuals to access the support they need and find their feet in society.